Customer Reviews

No More Drama (2002) (Repackaged)

5 star:		(84)
4 star:		(43)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

OK, before I review this re release of "No More Drama", I would like to make a few points relating to this CD. 1) When you re release a CD, I thought you were supposed to keep all the songs from the initial release and then add bonus tracks. On the re release [...], they list the original 17 songs and then [...it] has the 4 new tracks as track numbers 18-21. This could be true but in music stores and retail outlets, Track #4 from the initial release, "Krazy Games" is replaced by the new track, "He Think I Don't Know". Track #7, the Rocwilder produced, "Keep It Movin'" is replaced by "Rainy Dayz" w/Ja Rule. Track #8, "Destiny" is left off of the re release and "Where I've Been" w/Eve is bumped up from #9 to be #8. "Beautiful Day" is bumped up from #10 to be #9 on the re release. "Dance For Me" which was #11 moves up to #10 and the P Diddy remix of "No More Drama" is now #11. The two negatives about this are 1) You are already asking the consumer to pay for the price of the CD again by re releasing "No More Drama" and 2) You are also penalizing the consumer by not allowing them to have all of the songs, including the newly added tracks, all on one CD. If you didn't buy the initial "No More Drama" and you buy the re release you won't have 3 songs that are on the original release but you will have the two new tracks and the two new remixes. This may not be important to everyone, but if you are a fan of music like I am then you will understand where I am coming from. "No More Drama" is a refreshing new sound from Mary J. Those of you that have listened to all of her CDs know the road that Mary J can take you down. Whether it was from the "My Life" CD or whether it was from songs like "The Love I Never Had", "Your Child" or "Not Lookin'" w/K- Ci, we all know Mary J can show us a depressing side of herself. With "No More Drama", she shows us a sense of positivity that we haven't seen from her in awhile, although she did show signs with "Share My World". This is completely evident by the Dr. Dre produced first single, "Family Affair". Although, Mary J does invent a new vocabulary laced with words like "hateration", "hollaratin'" and "perculatin'", her message still gets the point across. Leave all your drama and worries behind and have a good time. On the Neptunes produced, "Steal Away", Mary is joined by a falsetto styled, Pharrell Williams, for a nice collaboration. It sounds like an old school song from years ago. The 2nd single, "No More Drama" is one of the CD's better tracks. The Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis produced track uses a sample from the soap opera "The Young & The Restless" to create a good song for MJB. The new track "Rainy Dayz" featuring Ja Rule sounds as if it was a theme for 9/11 and all the tragic events that happened in NY and at the Pentagon. Ja Rule provides a rap and some harmonies to the song as well. Irv Gotti also did a good job with the production. The new slow song "He Think I Don't Know" falls in the same lines of a "Your Child" or a "Don't Waste Your Time" on the "Mary" CD. It's not groundbreaking material but fans of Mary J Blige will enjoy this song, especially if they like Mary J Blige slow songs as much as I do. P Diddy's remix to "No More Drama" is a nice track, in my opinion. The lyrics and beat are totally different from the original version and it's nice to hear Mary and P Diddy together again. Other standout tracks include, "Love", the Missy Elliott produced "Never Been", the inspirational "Where I've Been" w/Eve, "In The Meantime", and "Testimony". If you are a Mary J fan then you have heard this all before, but it is nice to see that Mary J can put her troubles behind and move on with her life. You can actually sense that just by listening to this CD.

Mary's new album "No More Drama" says it all because I've been through a lot of drama the past 3 yrs. and it helped me a lot the song "Family Affair" is off the hzzook and slammin' on the charts, radio & video airwaves, and into the stores by my dawg Mighty Mighty DR.
So if you go through a lot of drama you gotta cop this disc and track # 17 "Testimony" which talks about herself having a lot of
bad days, depression, not enough love from people, loneliness, just aout the same as the slammin' Jimmy Jam-Terry Lewis produced title cut, it embodies the portion of the CBS television soap opera Y&R(Young & The Restless theme).
Neptunes are also on this album after producing for Busta Rhymes, Ray J. Ludacris, Usher, Mystikal, NERDZ, Babyface, and among others, the track "Steal Away" should be the next single cause it expresses how Mary wants to have the "real love" back again & last but not least the track entitled "Where I've Been" is so so crunk cause it talks about how she (mary) was bron and raised back in the day listening to Michael Jackson records all of the time which is produced by Ruff Ryders own Swizz Beatz, but there are a few mishaps but still this album is worth buying than Juvenile's "Project English".
Go ahead and cop this album cause Mary's back you want be dissapponted after all the other R&B singers and we must say that we can't forget about the late Aaliyah Dana Haughton.
Love Jamaal Da hey!

I'm mostly a rock fan who merely dabbles in current R&B (though I do collect classic funk and soul). So I'm hardly an expert, but I do know when people are good at what they do, and I feel that Mary J. Blige is one of the strongest and most talented artists working in R&B today. What sets Mary above the crowd here is the lyrics, as she doesn't bother with the usual romance and good time stuff, and lays down the law with sheer emotion and insight. The running theme in this album is how Mary has moved beyond her personal demons and has a new intelligent and experienced outlook on life, as you can see in the very strong lyrics in "Destiny," "Where I've Been, " the poem "Forever No More," and others. But the great lyrics don't need to carry the album, as Mary has racked up the best producers to keep the music moving as well. Faves include the hard charging "Love," the extra funky and reggae-ish groove in "Dance with Me," and "No More Drama" which is definitely dramatic and features the theme from The Young and the Restless. This is universally great soul that has no trouble breaking out of its boundaries.

The legion of fans following Mary J. Blige knows that her album promises quality - and it's no exception to her 5th album, NO MORE DRAMA - and if anything it's in fact her most diverse and solid effort to root herself as the "queen of hip-hop soul". No longer is she mourning and griping over the loss of love, but she matures into different dimensions of her emotions and talks about life. NO MORE DRAMA produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis proves just how mesmerizing Ms. Blige is when handling emotive soulful rendition; "Keep it moving" is groovy with heavy beats to make you want to spin the dance floor, "Destiny" is painfully excruciating - a paean on one's fate; "PMS" with Lenny Kravitz breathes maturity and understated grief -"LOVE AFFAIR" produced by Dr. Dre is her hot single - and to the later part of the album, "2U" and "In the Meantime" shows her exuberance in soulful ballads - she ends with a poem FOREVER NO MORE that is surprisingly enlighthening - then sums it up with the mellow "TESTIMONY". "Where I've Been" with Eve and her collaboration with Missy Elliot in "NEVER BEEN" is wondrous.

Anyone who listens to her knows that it is not her vocal range that enchant, but her sincerity towards her crooning. The glossy cover of Ms. Blige on NO MORE DRAMA is deceiving - her flamboyance does not do justification to the goods inside; she is an artiste who strives to be creative. Her much-missed soul and rapping is delightfully showcased; the poignancy and maturity is much appreciated. Fortunately, there are no dramatic changes in her honed singing skills - it proves that astute listners can trust vintage Mary J. Blige to deliver with NO MORE DRAMA. It's been long since we ever heard such an incredible feat in 2001.

Hey yall!!! I must tell you that this revised album is excellent in every way possible. Mary continues to give us her heartfelt soul on this collection of great songs. Also, she teams up with Ja Rule for a blazin new song (I predict another #1 hit for Mary). Also, the smooth as butta No More Drama remix featuring P. Diddy is a get up and be happy type jam. And I can't forget the powerful ballad: "He Think I Don't Know", which is classic Mary (yall know what I mean). OOOooooh yeah, also another future #1 hit is Dance For Me featuring Common. Just listen and you will know why.

One thing I love about this album is the excellent PRODUCTION and SOUND QUALITY. Mary gives us her best on this album. And it shows. Go out and pick up this album and see what I am talking about.

After 10 years in the game, Mary is still doin it! For her 5th studio album, Mary is taking it back to hip hop, and instead of crying over a man, she is celebrating life, Drama Free. NO MORE DRAMA- has all the elements for a tight Mary J. Blige album. For the ballad lovers, she has three tight ones: "2u", "In the Meantime", and "Fly Away". She got hip hop and dance tracks(YES!!), "Family Affair", "Keep it Movin", "Where I've Been", "Dance for Me", and two tight tracks, "LOVE"(She rappin again, and this time its tight!), where she's tellin her lover or anybody to show her some love or "stick it up in your mainframe". The other blazin hip hop song is "Steal Away" which was produced by the Neptunes. A duet between Mary and that Guy from the Neptunes, they are suggesting that they "steal away, leave for a day", escape the pressures of daily life and make love "all damn day"! She also has those woman anthems. "PMS" is definitely one of them. She goes there, and respectfully tells us guys to leave her alone, cause PMS has taken over. TIGHT! What makes the album distinct from the others is the Theme of No More Drama in her life. The title track, which uses the Theme song from "The Young and the Restless", Is like a deep breath of releif. "Testimony" and "Destiny" are the same. On "Destiny", Mary says "No Longer concerned with your opinion, over my life I have Dominion". Words to live by! This album is right up there with her classic "My Life" album. THere is little to no complaints about this album. She wants you to listen and learn, as well as shake ya booty. Even though "Sincerity" did not make the album like she promised two years ago, its aight. That song is old now, and to be honest, it would not even fit on this album. GO COP NO MORE DRAMA!!!!!!

Mary returns with NO MORE DRAMA, her first album since 1999's multiplatinum release MARY. This is the second album in a trilogy that started with MARY. NO MORE DRAMA is a more upbeat, carefree and fun album. Mary wants you to dance, and to forget your problems. Witness the first single Family Affair, one of the hottest R&B/hip hop tracks of the year, produced by Dr. Dre. The album also features Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who have had most success with Janet Jackson. As well there are Neptunes, Missy, and many other producers. Dance For Me actually runs in a similar vein as Family Affair, forget your problems, be free, dance and have fun. Mary relates to her fans in songs like PMS and No More Drama. Where I've Been features Eve, one of the album's highlights. Overall, I couldn't tell you how good this album is. It is just as good as MARY, which I believed to be one of the best albums ever, if not is surpasses it in many ways. This album is fun to listen to, so get crunk, put it in the CD player before you go out to party, and just set your body free with the great beat pumpin.

I hate to compare music artists' work to previous works but honestly I did just that with this project. This was the first album of MJB's that I didn't rush out and get on the release date. I did not buy it till after 'NO MORE DRAMA' was released as a single then after listening to it as a whole, I felt like this was a mini step backwards given how much I loved her previous album, 'Mary'.

To this day, I really only bump 5 songs constantly:

NO MORE DRAMA: one of the best modern r&b songs ever produced in my opinion

STEAL AWAY: love Pharrell's vocals & the Neptunes production; my only gripe? It's too short

LOVE - banger, loved hearing her perform this live as well!

FAMILY AFFAIR - this one had to grow on me but it's a hot track

RAINY DAYZ - I just love this song, the beats are hot, JaRule sounds great as does MJB

Other songs that I like but don't listen to on the regular are:

HE THINK I DON'T KNOW - really soulful sound to her voice

NO MORE DRAMA (remix) - whereas the original is more of an uplifting anthem, this version makes me want to dance & is very upbeat

NEVER BEEN - although Missy Elliot is all over this track & she's not my favorite MC, I still enjoy this song

The others are somewhat enjoyable but not really memorable so I consider them more filler and skip them. Like I said, as a fan, I'm not really sure what MJB was trying to accomplish with this disc but I found it more of a "miss" than a "hit" but the massive success of the leading 3 tracks: 'FAMILY AFFAIR', 'NO MORE DRAMA', & 'RAINY DAYZ' helped power the disc to multi-platinum status. I can only recommend that die-hard fans get this disc otherwise download the tracks you like.

Okay, here's the run-down of Mary's album. What's the 411?--breakthrough album. My Life--classic. Share My World--more or less something to tide us over until her next release. Mary--a near-classic.

Now, here she is with No More Drama. She may have left the drama behind, but it seems like the hits went away with it, leaving a mixed bag of an album.

Back when Mary first came out, she started the genre Hip-Hop Soul and was dubbed the Queen of it. But years done passed and there are so many women successfully doing this thing now (i.e., Sunshine Anderson). So with this album it seems like the Queen is influenced by the new-schoolers who were influenced by the old-school Mary J. Blige. In other words, Mary J. Blige sounds like a carbon copy of her own self.

This especially shows on her song, "Family Affair". Though it plays well in the clubs, when you sit and listen to it, it features some bad slanguage (like "holleration"), the most simplistic Dr. Dre beat ever made, and a loss of Mary's soulful singing. "Steal Away" is the kind of Neptunes song everybody thought they needed on their album, while the title track is an instance where the theme from "The Young & the Restless" is sampled yet again. And I don't know if the song "PMS" appeals to women because I'm a guy, but let's just say that a more subtle take on this subject would be better, like Angie Stone's "Time of the Month".

But there is good news on this album. "Never Been" featuring Missy Elliott is a good song that will take you back to her My Life days. "2U" is a soothing ballad where Mary sings well despite the lyrical shortcomings. Also, "Dance for Me" shows Mary doing her thang on a Sting sample.

The most innovative song is one that's not sung, which is her poem, "Forever No More". It practically redeems Mary of the few misses on this album and it outdoes any of the good songs on here. No More Drama may make you get crunk up on the dancery but Mary's seen better days.

For me, Mary's initial release of 'No More Drama' was lacking something. And with this release, Mary took steps towards correcting what was wrong with the initial presssing of the album. Mary brought soul back into this release with the additions of a few songs, and also brought back the excitement which was otherwise missing on the first disc.

The standout (of the new tracks, and perhaps of the album as a whole) is the new track "He Think I Don't Know". THIS is the Mary that I love! The Mary who feels deep and bears a part of her soul to you. It's bluesy and soulful...we needed that! The addition of the ever popular Ja Rule on new track "Rainy Days" also proved to be another of the set's highlights. But as far as the uptempo numbers go, when you need a remix call on P Diddy! For the first time in seven years Mary and Diddy are working together, and it's hot!!! The "No More Drama" remix is nothing like the original, but it's a perfect collaboration for the artists.

In all, I'm still not that pleased with "No More Drama" but at least Mary gave us more to savor with the addition of these added tracks until her next studio release.